It’s third time’s the charm for The Game as the dramedy, starring Hosea Chanchez and Wendy Raquel Robinson, nears its premiere on Paramount+, after previous runs on The CW and BET.
During Paramount’s TCA presentation on Tuesday, showrunner and writer Devon Greggory spoke about bringing back the Girlfriends spinoff, created by Mara Brock Akil, for a modern-day examination of racism, sexism, classism and more.
“We’re going to come deep with some deep issues because 2021 is different than 2008,” he said.
Instead of San Diego, The Game returns in Las Vegas and centers on Black culture through the prism of pro football. The team will tackle a number of social issues and more as they fight for fame, fortune, respect and love—all while trying to maintain their souls as they each play The Game.
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The Game will revisit a number of original characters portrayed by Chanchez and Robinson, and spotlight those played by Vaughn Hebron and Adriyan Rae. While it’s been years since the likes of Malik Wright (Chanchez) and Tasha Mack (Robinson) have been in the spotlight, Greggory said he thinks “these characters have evolved in a way where they’re only entertaining.” The same goes for the series itself, he added.
“It never got old, it just had to have an opportunity to reboot itself,” he continued. “A lot of times series don’t get that opportunity while they’re on the air, and I think that’s a mistake for a lot of television entities and different production companies. We should be able to evolve while we’re on the air.”
Before landing at Paramount+, The Game originally launched as a half-hour comedy on The CW and ran for three seasons. It later moved to BET for six seasons and became an hour-long dramedy.
Despite its multi-network history, for Greggory, the dramedy and its characters still got game: “These characters never got stale or old, they were always fresh.”
Paramount+ revealed that The Game is set to kick off Thursday, November 11. The stream also shared that Tim Daley and Toby Sandeman will join the cast, along side The Game alum Coby Bell who will make a special appearance.
Greggory executive produces with Brock Akil, Salim Akil and original executive producer Kelsey Grammer and Tom Russo of Grammnet NH Productions. The series is produced by CBS Studios, Akil Productions and Grammnet NH Productions.
